Dispenser for nested and cuffed bags

ABSTRACT

A DISPENSER FOR NESTED AND CUFFED FLEXIBLE BAGS COMPRISING A BASKET-LIKE FRAME INCLUDING BASE AND SIDE MEMBERS WITH STATIONARY AND MOVABLE RODS OPPOSITELY DISPOSED ON THE BASE MEMBER. THE FLEXIBLE BAGS ARE LOADED ONTO THE DISPENSER BY PLACING THE CUFFED END OF THE BAG OVER THE STATIONARY MOVABLE RODS WHILE THE MOVABLE RODS ARE DISPOSED TOWARD THE STATIONARY RODS. THE BAGS ARE PLACED IN POSITION FOR LOADING OF GROCERIES BY MOVING THE MOVABLE RODS SO THAT THEY ARE DISPOSED AWAY FROM THE STATIONARY RODS.

HSUE C. TSIEN DISPENSER FOR NESTED AND CUFFED BAGS Jan. 19, 1971 Filed May 9, 1969 6 /6. 7% Inventor At'tor nay United States Patent O1 fice 3,555,766 Patented Jan. 19, 1971 3,555,766 DISPENSER FOR NESTED AND CUFFED BAGS Hsue C. Tsien, Livingston, N.J., assignor to Esso Research and Engineering Company, a corporation of Delaware Filed May 9, 1969, Ser. No. 823,317 Int. Cl. B65b 67/12 US. CI. 5329 12 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A dispenser for nested and cuffed flexible bags comprising a basket-like frame including base and side members with stationary and movable rods oppositely disposed on the base member. The flexible bags are loaded onto the dispenser by placing the cuffed end of the bag over the stationary movable rods while the movable rods are disposed toward the stationary rods. The bags are placed in position for loading of groceries by moving the movable rods so that they are disposed away from the stationary rods.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE One of the largest potential markets for flexible plastic products has up to this time not been tapped. That is the use of flexible plastic products, such as polyethylene and polypropylene, as bags for the checkout loading of grocery products. The primary reason for this lack of development has been the difliculty in handling flexible bags by the operator of the checkout counter. Difficulties are inherent in separating a plastic bag from a plurality of such bags. Even when separated, difficulties are encountered in unfolding such a bag and loading groceries in it without collapsing or ripping the bag.

These inadequacies which result from the lack of stiffness of flexible bags, have resulted in the continuation of an obviously inefiicient method of loading and checking out groceries in a large grocery facility such as a typical supermarket. Thus, at present the typical checkout counter uses kraft paper bags which must be manually picked up, unfolded and opened, and then loaded. This results in long lines at the checkout counter or in the alternative expensive labor cost of loading at a more rapid rate.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The apparatus of the instant invention provides a means for employing flexible plastic bags by supplying an apparatus at a cost competitive with kraft paper bags, and at the same time provides for much more efiicient and rapid loading of groceries.

The apparatus of the instant invention is directed to a method for storing and dispensing a plurality of nested and cuffed bags. The apparatus of the instant invention holds the bags in an open position so that the innermost bag may be filled and then removed from the dispenser without disturbing the remainder of the nested and cuffed bags.

The dispenser of the instant invention comprises a basket-like frame including a base and side members. Extending upward from the base, and permanently attached thereto, is at least one stationary rod. The stationary rod is curved, and elongated so that it extends above the frame members. The base is also provided with at least one groove into which at least one movable rod is disposed. The movable rod is of the same design and construction as the stationary rod except that it may pivot towards and away from the stationary rod. The movable rod is connected to the frame by means of a throw clamp which is connected to the top of the frame.

In another embodiment the movable rods are provided with springs at the top which permits pivoting towards and away from the stationary rod, thus providing an alternate to clamping means. When springs are employed the movable rods need not be pivotable on the base, and hence are permanently attached thereto.

In operation a plurality of nested and cuffed flexible bags are fitted over the rods with the movable rods disposed toward the stationary rods. With the rods so disposed there is slack in the plurality of open bags. With the rods in this position it is an easy matter to fit the bags over the rods. The movable rods are moved so that they are disposed away from the stationary rods. Thus, the bags are placed under tension, resulting in stiffening and extension of the bags. This not only extends the bag to its full capacity, but also makes removal of the innermost bag much easier. This is explained by the fact that when a plurality of nested bags is placed under tension, over the rods, a force is provided on the bag which is in opposition to upward force provided by the removal of the innermost bag. The side members of the basket-like structure function as a limiting boundary so that packing of articles does not extend beyond the capacity of the bag. The extra bulging that would result without this frame would prevent the inner bag from being smoothly lifted out. The loaded inner bag is removed by lifting the bag, in a vertical direction, by the cuff of the bag.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a plan view of the dispenser of the instant invention;

FIG. 2 is a section of the instant invention taken along plane 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is another section of the instant invention taken along plane 3-3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view similar to FIG. 3 showing another embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Turning to FIG. 1 in detail, a plan view of one embodiment of the dispenser of the instant invention is illustrated. The overall dispenser is designated generally at 2. The dispenser comprises a base plate 5 and side members 4 which extend upward from the base plate 5. The base plate 5 and the extending side members 4 can be made of any material suitable for such a purpose such as metal or hard plastic. In a preferred embodiment aluminum is used for these structures. In FIG. 1, the base plate 5 is shown as rectangular. This is for purposes of illustration and not by way of limitation. Thus, the base plate may be circular or any shape convenient for the purpose intended. Two movable rods 8 and two stationary rods 6 are disposed on the rectangular base 5 in such a way that a movable rod always faces a stationary rod at the diagonally opposite end of the plate 5. The stationary rods 6 are permanently attached to the base 5 and disposed adjacent to side members 4. They are curved in cross section as shown in FIG. 1, and narrowed at one end 13 for ease in loading the bags as will be described hereinafter. Turning to FIG. 2, a section of a stationary rod is shown. As can be seen, the upper, narrowed portion 13 of the rod 6 is coated with an elastic pad 18. In a preferred embodiment the elastic material is rubber. It should be noted that a rubber pad 18 although useful in that it provides additional gripping power to the rods in holding the bags loaded on the rods, is not indispensable and can be removed where necessary. The stationary rod 6 extends above adjacent side member 4 so as to provide a convenient means for loading the cuffed end of the bag on the rod.

Turning now to FIG. 3 in detail, a sectional view of a movable rod 8 is shown. As can be seen in FIG. 1, the movable rod 8 has a rounded edge 9. Any suitable material may be used in the construction of a movable rod. In

a preferred embodiment movable rods are fabricated of aluminum. One end 20 of the movable rod 8 is tapered to facilitate loading of the bags, similar to the tapered face 13 of the stationary rod 6. The rounded edge 9 of the tapered end 20 is coated with an elastic, preferably rubber pad 21. Again, this coating is not essential but it is useful in providing improved gripping power between the outermost bag and the rods. A movable rod 8 which extends above the adjacent side members 4, is moved at the top by a throw clamp 10. In a preferred embodiment, the throw clamp 10 is a toggle clamp. It has the advantage of always locking the movable rods at two extreme positions, towards and away from the stationary rod. The toggle clamp 10, which is disposed on the top of adjacent side member 4, is connected to the movable rod 8 by meanse of a threaded screw into a tapped hole denoted at 11. When the movable rod 8 is disposed toward the stationary rod 6, lever 15 of clamp 10 is pushed in toward rod 8. When the lever 15 of clamp 10 is pulled out, the rod 8 moves away from stationary rod 6. The movement of rod 8 necessitates a pivot bearing surface 16, which is cast into the base plate 5. Although the bottom of the movable rod 8 is disposed in the pivot bearing surface hole 16, the bottom of the rod 8 does not reach the bottom of the hole 16. The clearance denoted at 17 is required in order to permit the movable rod 8 to pivot when the toggle clamp 10 is moved. In a preferred embodiment, a movable rod 8 moves through an angle of not more than two degrees. Two degrees is enough to move the top of the rod a distance of about /6 inch, for a flexible bag approximately 15 inches high, in a preferred embodiment, which provides tension on the nested bags and thereby removes any slackness in the bags.

Turning to FIG. 4, another embodiment of a movable rod is presented. In this embodiment one end or section 38 of the movable rod 37 is permanently fixed in the base 5. The other end or section denoted 30 comprises a reduced length of rod 33 bent at an angle in a plane defined by an imaginary line joining the movable and stationary IOds welded to a coiled spring 36. The spring 36 is movable over an angle of about 15 between the position used for placing the bags over the rods, i.e. the position toward the stationary rod 6 and the grocery loading position, i.e. position away from the stationary rod 6. Movable spring 36 may be covered with an elastic coating 31. As stated above such a coating improves the adherence between the spring and the flexible bags, but the tension provided by the rods is enough to prevent slippage when the innermost bag is unloaded. In a preferred embodiment both the movable spring 36 and the stationary end 38 of rod 37 is fabricated of steel. The elastic tubing 31 in a preferred embodiment is rubber.

In operation, a plurality of nested and cufied plastic or flexible bags are positioned onto the plurality of stationary and movable rods. While the bags are being placed over the rods, the movable rods 8 are disposed diagonally toward the stationary rods 6. This is illustrated in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4. In FIG. 1 the plurality of nested and cuffed bags are shown at 12, with the lever 15 of the toggle clamp in the inward position as illustrated in FIG. 3. As illustrated the bags are in slack configuration. FIG. 4 shows the locations of the movable end 30 of the movable rod 37 while the bags are placed on the rods.

After the plurality of nested and cuffed bags are placed on the rods, the lever of the throw clamp 10 is pulled out and locked so that the cuffs are tightly stretched on four corners by the four curved rods. This is illustrated in FIG. 1, wherein bags 12a are shown in an extended open position. In FIG. 3, movable rod 8 is shown by dotted lines in the position 8a away from stationary rod 6. This outward movement of the movable rod 8 is caused by the outward movement of the toggle clamp 10 which in turn is caused by outward positioning of the clamp lever to position 15a.

FIG. 4 shows the positions for placing bags onto the movable and stationary rods of the second embodiment of the instant invention. In order to dispose a plurality of nested bags onto movable and stationary rods, the movable section 30 of the movable rods are stretched toward the stationary rods so that the movable end 30 is about at an angle of 0 with the stationary section 38. After the cuffed bags are disposed on the rods, the movable end 30 is released, and the spring 36 springs back to its unconstrained position designated at 30a (in dotted lines). The bags are thus placed under tension and are ready to be loaded.

After the operator has disposed the cuffs of the bags 12 over the rods so that the bags are under tension (position 12a in FIG. 1) he loads the groceries or other materials to be placed in the bags in the innermost bag of the plurality of nested bags. The walls 4 of the basket function as a limiting boundary so that the articles cannot be packed beyond their normal dimensions. Thus, since there is no extra bulging that would otherwise prevent the inner bag from being smoothly lifted out, the operator simply pulls up the top bag by the culfs and removes it, permitting the next bag to be ready for filling. When all the bags are removed the toggle clamp 10 or the movable end 30 is pushed in, and a new plurality of nested and cuffed flexible bags are placed on the dispenser. Thus, the procedure is repeated with a minimum of down time.

It should be appreciated that although a rectangular basket with four rods is illustrated as a preferred embodiment, the dimensions of the base plate 5 and the walls 4, as well as the number of movable and stationary hooks, is dependent upon the application and is in no way limited to the configuration shown.

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for the loading and dispensing of a plurality of nested and cuffed bags comprising:

(a) a basket-like frame including a base and side members;

(b) a plurality of stationary and movable rods, disposed on said base, over which the cutfs of the nested bags are disposed;

(c) means for disposing at least one movable rod in positions toward and away from said stationary rod.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the means for disposing said movable rod in at least two positions comprises:

(a) a throw clamp disposed on the top of one of said side members and connected to said movable rod, so that when said clamp is disposed in a first position, said movable rod is positioned toward said stationary rod, and when said clamp is disposed in a second position, said movable rod is moved to a position away from said stationary rod;

(b) means disposed on said base for pivoting of said movable rod, when said rod is activated by said clamp.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said movable and stationary rods are disposed adjacent to said side members with said rods disposed so that a movable rod faces a stationary rod at the diagonally opposite end of said base.

4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein said plurality of stationary and movable rods extend beyond the top of said side members.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein said basket-like frame and said plurality of stationary and movable rods are aluminum.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the ends of said stationary and movable rods over which said bags are disposed are coated with rubber.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said movable rod is comprised of a stationary section, disposed in said base, and a movable section above said stationary section and connected to said stationary section, said movable section movable between a first position toward said stationary rod and a second position away from said stationary rod.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein said movable section of said movable rod comprises a reduced length of rod bent at an angle to said stationary section of said movable rod and a coiled spring welded to said reduced length of rod.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein said plurality of stationary and movable rods extend beyond the top of said side members.

10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the ends of said stationary and movable rods over which said bags are disposed are coated with rubber.

11. A method for loading, filling and dispensing a plurality of nested and cufied flexible bags comprising:

(a) placing a plurality of nested and cuffed flexible bags over a plurality of stationary and movable rods said movable hooks disposed so that the cuffs of said bags easily fit over said rods;

(b) tightening said movable rods so that said plurality of bags are under tension in a full, open position;

(c) loading the innermost bag of the plurality of nested bags;

(d) pulling out the loaded innermost bag by its cuffs, thereby placing the next innermost bag in position to be loaded;

(e) repeating steps (c) and (d) until all the bags have been loaded and dispensed;

(f) loosening said movable rods and repeating the steps above.

12. An apparatus for the loading and dispensing of a plurality of nested and cuffed bags comprising:

(a) a basket-like frame including a base and side members; (b) a plurality of stationary and movable rods, disposed on said base;

whereby a plurality of nested and culled bags may be disposed within said basket-like frame with the cuffs of said bags disposed over said stationary and movable rods; :and (c) means for disposing said movable rod toward said stationary rod to facilitate loading of the bags onto said stationary and movable rods and away from said stationary rod after said bags are disposed on said rods so that said bags are maintained in a stiff open position during dispensing of said bags.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,622,953 12/ 1952 Skillman et al 53390X 3,313,504 4/1967 iStultze 24899 FOREIGN PATENTS 312,473 12/ 1955 Switzerland 5 3-390 THERON E. CONDON, Primary Examiner E. F. DESMOND, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

